The centralized plant breeding techniques of the green revolution have yielded good results in more favourable agricultural environments. However, most low-resource farmers in marginal areas have not benefited from these varieties. As an alternative to centralized breeding, farmer participatory approaches using Participatory Varietal Selection (PVS) and Participatory Plant Breeding (PPB)...

The IFOAM International Animal Husbandry Alliance (IAHA) is an informal network of individuals and organizations interested in supporting and strengthening the development of organic animal husbandry. 

The Okavango Delta, in northwest Botswana, is one of the very few major interior delta systems that do not flow into a sea or ocean, with a wetland system that is almost intact. Land rights issues came out strongly during the inscription process of the Okavango Delta as World Heritage...

A prominent leader of India’s fishworkers succumbed to COVID-19 on 8 October. T Peter was a committed organizer and a practical leader with exemplary political acumen. T Peter, the General Secretary of the National Fishworkers Forum (NFF), India, passed away on 8 October, 2020. About a week earlier, on 2 October,...

Carl Sheard is an organic pig farmer (45 sows) in the Pays de La Loire region of France who is experimenting a system of outdoor fattening using diverse combinations of forage crops. Trials began this autumn 2019 which consist of providing a diverse range of mixed forage crops throughout the...

The 1960 UN Conference on the Law of the Sea failed to reach agreement on the breadth of the territorial sea and fishing limits, with India, Chile and Ecuador playing decisive roles. The road to the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) was littered with failed...

In a world where most of us buy our food from big food retailers with global supply chains, and governments set the policy framework, it might not seem that local authorities have much of a role to play in our food system. However, they still have control of the ‘old...

No dig beds not only save from back-breaking work of digging but also create favourable conditions for microbial life in the soil. In this video, Nasira Habib shares how she prepares no-dig beds to grow vegetables and flowers in her organic home garden.

In this month’s programme we look at one of the most pressing issues facing farming today – that of youth and what’s being done to offer interesting and viable options for life on the farm for young people in developing countries . We have highlights from IFAD’s Advocate for Rural Youth...

Honeybees are susceptible to various diseases, some of which are very contagious and can be easily transmitted. It is very important that beekeepers are able to recognize the first signs of disease in hives and know how to proceed to contain and treat the disease. This practice describes the factors...

Squid pot, locally known as “bubo pangnokos”, is a regular receptacle device mainly to catch squid in coastal waters. The shape of the gear is semi-cylindrical and is generally made of polyethylene netting mounted on a bamboo frame. It is provided with a non-return valve, which allows easy entrance but...

During the pre-monsoon season, between March-and May, some areas in Nepal experience water shortages. On the other hand, during the monsoon season, water excess causes regular floods and landslides. In this situation, activities such as agriculture or livestock, as well as the availability of drinking water and women’s workload are...

Throughout Eastern Africa, pressure on land is increasing. Average farm size is decreasing as plots are sub-divided and farmers struggle to find space on their farms to grow subsistence and cash crops as well as to keep livestock. Many farmers would like to keep dairy cows but do not have...

Farmers’ participatory varietal evaluation of wheat and rice was conducted for three consecutive years from 1999 to 2002, in the Punjab, India. Farmers adopted new varieties that better met their needs and enabled them to break their monoculture dependence. They also made use of seed priming and zero tillage, a...

Using participatory plant breeding, poor and marginal farmers in Eastern India, who previously grew old and low yielding land races, produced several new varieties of upland rice. Self-help groups produced truthful seed of these rice varieties, with production rising from 39 in 2002-2003 to 81 t in 2003-2004. It was...

Farmworkers in the U.S. confront numerous challenges. They receive poverty wages and have high rates of wage theft, precarious immigration status, and a high risk of injury and fatality (Smolski, 2019). They also face rampant food insecurity, with 40 to 70 percent of farm­workers experiencing a lack of reliable access...

By eliminating unwarranted opening of new land for farming, indiscriminate cutting of trees and bushfires, woodlands are regenerating, wild mushrooms can be harvested again and small wildlife like bushbucks are returning. Tortoises and snakes including the much feared black mamba cobras are reoccupying their original habitats. The degraded environment and...

El Corredor Seco Centroamericano (CSC) es una de las áreas centroamericanas más afectada por los eventos extremos, en particular la sequía. Con el objetivo de fortalecer la sostenibilidad, inclusión y resiliencia de los sistemas productivos de los países del SICA, se realiza un inventario de buenas prácticas y tecnologías para...

Quarterly launched, the Right to Food newsletter updates timely on the progress and advancements of the right to food around the world, including news, events and resources produced by FAO and stakeholders. In the course of nine months, COVID-19 has spread across the world. It has caused setbacks to development,...

On the programme, which asked how coronavirus is threatening food security, I pointed out that all the stories making international headlines in relation to the impact of the pandemic on food – milk being poured down the drain, plane loads of eastern European vegetable pickers licensed to travel to the...